Michelle Fischbach runs for re-election in Minnesota's safest Republican congressional district

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After ousting 30-year DFL incumbent Collin Peterson from his seat two years ago, voters in Minnesota's Seventh Congressional District will decide this November whether to re-elect his Republican successor Michelle Fischbach.

The district — which spans the western half of Minnesota — is the safest GOP congressional district in the state. In 2020, it favored Trump over Biden by a nearly 2-1 margin, and since redistricting has only grown more favorable for Republicans. Fischbach is expected to easily win a second term.

"My priorities have and always will be making sure the economy is strong in rural Minnesota, in the Seventh District," Fischbach said in an interview. "Since I've been there for two years, [Democrats] have continued to spend money hand over fist. That doesn't curb inflation. And that's what people are talking about."

Fischbach has vastly outraised her opponents. In the latest filings with the Federal Election Commission, Fischbach's campaign reported raising more than $1.6 million during the entire election cycle, while DFLer Jill Abahsain reported more than $26,000 and Legal Marijuana Now candidate Travis "Bull" Johnson has relied on a mixture of donations and loans.

Loren Everson, a 60-year-old unemployed Willmar resident, said he plans to vote for Fischbach, along with other Republicans on the ballot. He said he used to lean Democrat, but feels the DFL party has moved too far to the left.

"It's like they're turning the public against white people," Everson said.

Jerry Hagen, a 73-year-old farmer from Atwater, said he doesn't like Fischbach, especially because of her early votes in Congress: Just hours after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Fischbach sided with a number of House Republicans in voting against certifying Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 victories in two states.

Hagen said he misses Peterson, who was one of the last conservative Democrats in Congress.

"I like the people that are in the center," he said. "I can't figure out why people can't compromise anymore."

Fischbach, 56, said she stands by her vote, which she attributed to "election irregularities" in Arizona and Pennsylvania.

"This isn't the first time that election integrity has been questioned," she said.

Abahsain, 68, said Fischbach's vote was counter to a functioning democracy.

"That democracy got her into office and then she voted like that," said Abahsain. "The hypocrisy just stuns us."

Prior to being elected to Congress, Fischbach spent more than 20 years in the Minnesota Senate. She was the chamber's first female president and also served a brief stint as Minnesota's 49th lieutenant governor.

Fischbach has long opposed abortion and co-chairs the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, she praised the decision.

Abahsain, a former educator who taught abroad for nearly 20 years before moving to Sauk Centre, said her top issues include preserving health care access for women, as well as increasing access to education, health care and mental health care in rural areas. But her main focus is the farm bill.

Fischbach serves on the House Agriculture Committee, which Peterson chaired during his tenure. Both Abahsain and Johnson, 52, said they are worried Republicans want to change the farm bill so aid to farmers isn't tied to food assistance, which could affect the nearly 42 million Americans who receive help through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

"I don't think that's ever been a priority — certainly not one of mine," Fischbach said. "We're just starting out looking at the farm bill. We've got to put it together by 2023 and we've just started listening sessions."

Fischbach said she hears concerns about crop insurance in those sessions, and wants to make sure the crop insurance program isn't tied to other incentives or punitive measures.

Fischbach's other priorities include securing funding for rural broadband and housing. Yet she opposed last year's bipartisan infrastructure law and then declined to push for earmarks in her district in the budget bill, citing concerns about the process.

Because of that, some voters say they don't feel Fischbach is doing anything for their region, Abahsain said. And some voters are say they don't feel like they're being heard, Johnson said.

"There's never any follow-up. There's never any feedback. The only time [Fischbach] interacts is in a very scripted manner," Johnson said.

Johnson considers himself more of an Independent or Libertarian but said the Legal Marijuana Now party asked him to be on their ticket because he agrees with their stance on legalizing marijuana.

"My whole platform has to do with shrinking government," Johnson said, noting his main issues are reducing the national deficit, addressing suicide among veterans and lessening punishments for victimless drug crimes.

This is the first time Johnson and Abahsain have run for federal office. Two years ago, Johnson ran unsuccessfully for county commissioner and Abahsain ran an unsuccessful campaign against Torrey Westrom for a Minnesota Senate seat.

Both face tough odds in this staunchly conservative district.

"It's an overwhelmingly Republican district. Enough said," noted Peterson, the Blue Dog Democrat that Fischbach defeated two years ago.

Staff writer Hunter Woodall contributed to this report.